“This substantial settlement ensures that OpenAI redresses harm and changes its recruitment practices so that US workers receive a fair opportunity for highly sought-after technology positions,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.
OpenAI’s discriminatory practices
The settlement comes after an investigation by the DOJ, through its Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER), which found that OpenAI and Statsig violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) by discriminating against US workers during the Permanent Labour Certification (PERM) process.
PERM is a certification issued by the Department of Labour (DOL) that allows employers to hire a foreign employee to work permanently in the US. The DOL must first certify that there are not sufficient US workers who are able, willing, qualified, and available to accept the job opportunity in the area of intended employment.
According to the DOJ’s probe, OpenAI did not advertise the positions it sought to fill through the PERM programme on its external job website despite its standard practice to do so.
It also required applicants to mail paper applications for positions advertised as part of PERM recruitment, and even advertised the roles on the radio late at night to discourage US workers from applying.